halloween decorations

i love halloween. i love the season it's in. i love the smells, the candy, the colors and the decorations! the banner is from last year, but i don't think i ever got around to sharing it. the rosette thingy i just made tonight. super easy to make and came together in a jiffy.

banner:


supplies:

chipboard pennant shapes: jenni bowlin
pattern paper, embellishments, string: making memories
cardstock: bazzill
diecut machine: slice

rosette:


supplies:

pattern paper: making memories
ink: colorbox, tim holtz
cardstock: bazzill
skull illustration: the graphics fairy
diecut machine: silhouette
other: twine

what are you making for halloween?

in a dress

truth be told, i rarely ever scrapbook. i think the permanence of the gluing down of photos makes me a little uneasy. plus, my tastes change so much... what if i don't like this in 5 years? but, i've recently changed my mind. i like it now & my family will enjoy what i'm creating... so what's the big hold-up?!?!
i am promising myself that i will document these things, these times i am sharing with my children, because before you know it, they'll be older and not so nice;) i am finding that it's a little like creative therapy for me.
here's to preserving my life's story with paper and glue.



supplies used:
cardstock: bazzill
pp & sticker: cosmo cricket
ribbon: may arts
letters: american crafts, cosmo cricket
diecut machine: silhouette
font: ck_peaches (can't seem to find a link for this font... sorry!)

day 14: ten things i love about you

for the last day, i decided to not do a card, but this little tin of "10 things i love about you" with the "you" being my husband:) i had a good time putting it all together, so i hope you enjoy it!

1. he always puts our family first.











2. he is very inventive. (and the little gears on this one really move!)










3. he's a pretty funny guy:)











4. he is a great father (and step-father!)











5. i think he's pretty cute!











6. he can cook (i.e. he makes me eggs benedict on special occasions:)










7. he is caring

8. he likes my cards











9. he is, ummm, well, i think he's sexy:)











10. he loves me!

14 days of valentine's

i haven't blogged in quite some time, but what would be better than 14 days of valentines to get me back into the blogosphere???

stay tuned, for tomorrow will start the gushy goodness- 14 handmade cards and links to others i love.

enjoy!

thank you!

oh, and i must thank mara for featuring me as scrapbooker of the week over on her blog. check out here super chic blog and her totally cute tags and such in her etsy store!

thinking of you

card made for fun. was inspired by hero arts new cling stamps. they are so cool!

mother's day frames

matching frames made for mother's day presents with photos of the kids in the them. i think they turned out well!

finished lily mini album!

click on the photo to see the rest on my flickr!

feel free to leave any feedback and/or comments!

new mini album!

my newest mini album project... all about lily! and no, i haven't finished the last one that i sneak peeked here;)
i am really excited about this one. it is turning out so great and i am proud of myself! i've used a lot of techniques and a lot of different products (i tend to use products from the same line so it looks cohesive... and yet this is cohesive and funky... how about that!) i only have about 4 more pages to do and then it will be done. this time, i am keeping this one for myself... i deserve it;)

hopefully, if i stick to it, i will post the final results in a few days! here's to actually finishing something!

CHA

in the spirit of CHA (and since there is no way i'll ever be able to go to one), i wanted to share a couple links to those who read this blog... gauche alchemy has compiled two lists of links to giveaways and new releases on their blog and i wanted to get these out to all who are interested.
if you go here and here, you will find some links to manufacturers who are having giveaways and releases of new products.
also, serendipity scrapbooks has a great directory going on here on their message board of sneak peeks of new lines by many different manufacturers.

also, feel free to leave a comment with your favorite manufacturers and their new lines. this is all so exciting!

take a peek

a mini album i'm putting together in hopes it will motivate me this year to get some stuff done. look forward to seeing the finished product soon!

mini album

my first (completed) mini album for my mother-in-law's birthday present... definitely didn't want to give this away!! haha. i had a lot of fun making it and i was surprised at how good it came out;) i am the best at procrastinating, and i was putting this one together right up until we left for PA. sheesh:)

click on the photo to see it larger and to see pages individually on my flickr.

supplies used:
basic grey sultry collection
heidi grace bouquet decorative pins
imaginisce crocheted blossoms
american crafts remarks; whistlestop
target dollar bin stamps
office depot date stamp
bo bunny bodacious brads; wild berry
hero arts gems (flowers)
random buttons
bazzill floss and stitching templates
7 gypsies 97% complete tags
my mind's eye bohemia bliss transparent flower
mark richards gems
making memories garden party blossoms and buttons
staples
office depot binder rings
chipboard
we r memory keepers page protectors (cut to desired size)

my first "jacked" layout

this is the layout i decided to do for the latest jacked contest.



click here to find out what i'm talking about.

the layout that was jacked is from one of kate's wonderful layouts. she is truly inspiring. this is fun:)

full of wonder

cogsmo two page layout
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

i completely fell in love with this paper and embellishment line from cosmo cricket when i saw it in the store one day. i ended up just buying the paper, the blackboard cutouts and the die cut paper... i could have bought the ribbon and the rub-ons and whatever else, but i had to practice will power:) i really enjoyed putting this layout together with two of my favorite photos of my bug;)

supplies used:
paper: cosmo cricket cogsmo; cogs, bandwidth
blackboard: cosmo cricket; cogsmo
die-cuts: cosmo cricket; cogsmo
ink: versa color pigment ink; black

it's a pirate's life for me!!

pirate two page layout
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

brendan's 5th birthday was a pirate extravaganza... treasure hunt complete with a treasure chest and tons of treasure, a pirate ice cream cake and a pirate piñata. it was def a wonderful day:)

supplies used:
paper: karen foster design; pirate collage
bazzil bling; silver
stickers: sandylion essentials; pirate
rub-ons: me & my big ideas; coastal- icons
pen: gelly roll; soufflé white

funny faces

funny faces
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

since i'm fairly new to scrapbooking i decided to do 8x8 layouts because it doesn't seem as intimidating as 12x12. throughout my observations, i've noticed that some will do half layouts... 6x12 and i thought it was pretty clever. i looked around for 4x8 page protectors or really any other size pages for my 8x8 album to no avail, so this morning, i decided to cut a 8x8 page in half and make my own;)

here is my first attempt at an odd shaped layout and i really like the contrast to the full pages when it's in the album; it keeps you guessing;)

supplies used:
paper: my mind's eye; bohemia- boulevard "family ties" harlequin/green
chalk: colorbox chalk- cheastnut roan
letters: american crafts thickers; daiquiri black
embellishments: fancy pants; harvest felt shapes

what a ride!

what a ride!
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

i've loved this photo of brendan since i took it in 2006 at our state fair. the top photo shows his face after getting off the "yo-yo" ride; SO funny!

supplies used:
paper: anna griffin
archiver's cardstock; turquoise solid
embellishments: bazzil chips; arrows
stamp: autumn leaves; journal circle
ink: versa color pigment ink; black
marker: zig writer; black
pen: gelly roll soufflé; white

massive update

i've done quite a bit more scrapping lately... i don't know what's gotten into me!
the next couple posts will be what i've worked on lately. expect a few;)

after getting our first ultrasound and realizing that my free days are numbered, i guess i've got a little fire under my butt. that and i've recently acquired some nifty details, etc. from work (archiver's). enjoy!

sisters layout

sisters layout
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

one of my first layouts ever. i started this layout knowing i wanted to do some "weaving" of those ribbons... i loved the color combination with the flowers behind the photo. i remember picking up the ribbons at target and the flowers might be making memories, but aside from that, i don't know what i used;) i am going to have to start recording this stuff;))))

digital layout i.

digital layout i.
Originally uploaded by qtips photo

this is my first all digital scrapbooking layout. i really like the idea of digital scrapbooking, but would probably add some "real" embellishments to add depth and dimension if i were to put this in one of my scrapbooks.
the kit used is called "sun porch" by designer amy teets. you can find that kit here for free.